NRA CET 2024: Latest Update, Exam Date, Pattern & Syllabus

The full form of NRA CET is National Recruitment Agency Common Eligibility Test (NRA CET). The NRA is an autonomous society under the Societies Act thay will work as an independent, professional and specialist organisation. The plan to set up NRA was proposed by the Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. NRA CET is a screening/preliminary exam that will be conducted by the newly approved NRA to shortlist candidates for various Group-B and C non-technical and non-gazetted posts. Candidates will now have to appear for one single entrance exam, i.e, CET, for various Government Exams such as Bank, SSC & Railways. 

The National Recruitment Agency (NRA) will conduct Common Eligibility Test (CET) for various non-gazetted posts in Central Government departments. The setting up of NRA was announced in the 2020-21 budget. Through NRA CET candidates are screened/shortlisted for certain categories of posts in Central Government for which the recruitment is carried out through Staff Selection Commission (SSC), Railway Recruitment Boards (RRBs) and Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS). On the basis of CET scores, candidates are considered for the further rounds of selection. The final selection is done through separate exams, to be conducted by the respective recruitment agencies.

NRA CET is held twice a year and the score is valid for three years. Candidates can give Common Eligibility Test every year to improve their scores. Based on the score, candidates can apply for various Banking, SSC and Railway recruitments. NRA CET will replace prelims/tier 1 exams conducted by recruitment bodies such as SSC, IBPS and RRBs.

There will be atleast one NRA CET exam centre in each district of the country. There will be two centres in ladakh district also. With one single screening test, it will reduce the burden of candidates for applying and appearing in various prelims/tier 1 exam.

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NRA CET Full Form

Benefits of NRA CET

Which Exam will Come Under CET?

In the process, NRA is likely to overtake the responsibility of conducting the prelims/tier-I online exam from three government recruitment bodies:

All candidates who clear NRA CET will then have to appear for the further stages/tiers of their respective exams that will be conducted by the respective government bodies-SSC, RRB and IBPS.

NRA CET: Salient Features & Benefits

Check out some salient features and benefits of the National Recruitment Agency CET below:

• NRA CET will be conducted to screen candidates at the first level only for SSC, IBPS, and RRB recruitment
• Based on NRA CET score, final selection will be made through separate specialised tier-II/tier-III exams to be conducted by the respective recruitment agency (SSC/IBPS/RRB)
• NRA CET will be conducted twice a year
• Complete NRA CET exam process, including filling up of the application form, release of admit card, announcement of result, etc. will be done online
• There will be separate online NRA CETs for graduates, Class 12 and Class 10 candidates
• The official website of NRA will have mock tests and 24X7 helpline
• Candidates will be able to schedule their tests and choose exam centre of their choice   
• NRA CET score of a candidate will be valid for three years
• Best available NRA CET score of three years to be considered for selection/recruitment
• NRA CET scores can be shared with central government, state governments, Union Territories (UTs), Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) and private sector
• Through NRA CET, candidates will get the opportunity to compete for many posts by appearing for just one exam

Some of the key highlights of NRA CET 2024 exam are summarised below:

NRA CET 2024 notification will be released online in PDF form. The notification will comprise all details related to the exam, such as important dates, eligibility, selection process, exam pattern, syllabus, and so on. NRA Common Eligibility Test will be treated as tier 1 exam while the further rounds of selection such as tier 2 & tier 3 will be conducted by the respective recruitment bodies, SSC, IBPS and RRBs. NRA CET exam will be conducted in 12 languages besides English and Hindi. NRA CET Notification 2024 PDF will be provided on this page after it is released.

NRA CET 2022 Notification 2024 PDF (Available Soon)

NRA CET 2024 application form will be available online. Interested candidates can fill the application form within the prescribed deadline. The required application fees will be notified by the examination authority. The application process will comprise several stages, such as registration, uploading the documents, filling the detailed application form, paying the application fees, previewing the application form, and final submission.

NRA CET Eligibility 2024

Check out the basic NRA CET eligibility criteria below:

• Educational qualification: NRA CET will be conducted at three levels-Class 10, Class 12, and Graduation. This means that candidates who have cleared Class 10, Class 12, and Graduation are all eligible to apply.
• Age limit: There will be an upper age limit for the exam. The age limit will differ as per the post for which the candidate will apply. However, there will be relaxations in the upper age limit for candidates belonging to reserved categories such as Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribe (ST), Other Backward Class (OBC), Persons with Disability (PwD), etc.
• Number of attempts: There is no bar on the number of attempts and one can take for the exam, subject to the upper age limit prescribed

The NRA CET recruitment process will contain the following steps:

Step 1: Fill NRA CET application form

As the first step, candidates will have to fill NRA CET application form online mode on the official website of the agency. The NRA CET application fee is expected to be nominal and in line with the fee of other SSC/RRB/IBPS recruitment exams. Candidates might also have the option of scheduling the test and selecting the test centre of their choice at this stage of the recruitment process.

Step 2: Download NRA CET admit card

NRA CET admit cards will be released by the National Recruitment Agency on the official website of the exam. It will be mandatory for candidates to carry the NRA CET admit card to the allotted exam centre.

Step 3: Appear for NRA CET paper

Next, candidates will have to appear for their respective NRA CET paper in online mode. The NRA CET paper will contain MCQs containing four answer choices with one correct option.

Step 4: Check NRA CET result

NRA CET result will be declared by the agency on the official website of the exam as per the prescribed schedule. The result is likely to be declared in the form of the merit list. The NRA CET score of a candidate will be valid for three years.

Step 5: Appear for the next stages of respective recruitment exams

All shortlisted candidates will then have to appear for the next stages/tiers of their respective recruitment exams. Further, all the tiers will be conducted by the respective recruitment agencies-SSC, RRB and IBPS.   

NRA CET Exam Centres 2024

Check some key highlights about NRA CET exam centres below:

• NRA CET exam infrastructure will be created in about aspirational 117 districts
• NRA CET will be conducted at over 1,000 exam centres in every district of India ensuring ease of access for rural youth, women, and disadvantaged candidates

NRA CET syllabus will be in line with the educational qualification of candidate- Class 10, 12 or Graduation. The syllabus will include topics such as Basic Aptitude, Test of Reasoning, Verbal Ability, General Science and General Knowledge, etc. Candidates can check below few topics for NRA CET exam.

General Intelligence & Reasoning: Analogies, Syllogism, Venn Diagram, Input Output, Puzzles, Coding and Decoding, Seating Arrangement, etc.

Quantitative Aptitude: Number Systems, Percentages, Data Interpretation, Mensuration, Simple and Compound Interest, etc.

English Language: Vocabulary, Fill in the Blanks, Comprehension Passage, Cloze Test, Para Jumbles, etc.

General Awareness: Current Affairs of National and International Importance, Games and Sports, General Science, Indian Economy, etc.

Check out some of the key highlights regarding NRA CET exam pattern are given below:

• NRA CET exam pattern 2024 will be divided into two parts-A and B. Part A will consist of Basic Aptitude, Test of Reasoning, Verbal Ability, General Science and General Knowledge. Part B paper will test the candidate’s psychology and response to certain situations, qualifying in nature, yet mandatory for final appointments
• NRA CET will be conducted in 12 major Indian languages including English and Hindi
• The NRA CET question paper will contain objective-type multiple-choice questions (MCQs) only
• NRA CET syllabus and level of difficulty will be standard and in line with the educational qualification of a candidate-Class 10, Class 12 or graduation

As NRA CET will be a common screening exam for all the Group B and C posts, therefore, the competition will be high. Candidates require a proper strategy to crack the exam. To begin with the preparation, candidates must first go through the syllabus and exam pattern. Then they should devise a proper study plan for the exam and follow that diligently. Candidates must take 30-40 full mock tests and analyse the mocks. They should work on improving the weak areas. 

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NRA CET Preparation Tips

NRA CET Books

Candidates can check below the NRA CET FAQs.